VALDOSTA —
Amid cries of jubilation from the mother of a fallen local veteran, a new memorial was unveiled Saturday afternoon, at the intersection of North Valdosta Road and Inner Perimeter, in honor of the late Petty Officer First Class Joseph Adam McSween.
The intersection has now been officially named the “Navy EODI Adam McSween Memorial Intersection,” thanks to three years of petitioning state and local officials by Florence McSween, Adam’s mother and the Georgia president of American Gold Star Mothers.
The intersection dedication was preceded by a ceremony at Georgia Christian School in Dasher. Family, friends, supporters and state officials gathered to remember Adam.
Two key figures in passing the resolution for the memorial, state Rep. Ellis Black of District 178 and state Sen. Tim Golden of District 8, were among the guests who spoke at the ceremony.
Col. Drew Meyerowich, Adam’s commanding officer during his deployment in Iraq, was also in attendance. The colonel spoke of the bravery and dedication of Adam and the explosive ordinance disposal unit.
“They were truly great, and in a flash they were gone,” said Meyerowich. “The amount of hours they were putting into the fight were staggering. I only had four teams to
cover 164 square kilometers.”
A replica of the road sign was unveiled and the memorial’s resolution was read before the somber gathering.
Mrs. McSween took time to thank everyone involved in getting her son the recognition that he deserves and she recalled Adam’s dedication to his job and country.
“He went on his first tour to Iraq and saw what was going on over there,” said Mrs. McSween. “He said ‘I will go back’ and he did, because he loved what he did and wanted to help the people in this country.”
Petty Officer First Class McSween was an explosive ordinance disposal technician who was killed in action near Kirkuk, Iraq, in April 2007.
Adam Mcsween and several others were deployed with an Army patrol when an insurgent rocket struck his resting convoy. He and two others were killed immediately from the blast.
“Adam chose. He was not coerced," said Mrs. McSween. “He wore his uniform proudly and he loved his job.”
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